By RANA F. SWEIS

AMMAN — When the Arab Spring started, Safwan al-Ma’aytah, 30, posted photos of himself online, wearing black sunglasses and carrying large signs calling for political and economic reforms.

Today, he and other members of Jordanian opposition movements say they are increasingly disillusioned by economic hardship and by regional violence across the border, especially in neighboring Syria.

Mr. Ma’aytah even stopped protesting for a while this year — but he was back on the streets last Friday in the southern city of Karak, where the government continues to face significant economic and political challenges, not least from the country’s Bedouin tribes, the historical backbone of support for the monarchy.

Also last week, an Islamist-led rally in Irbid, north of the capital, ended in violence after activists clashed with pro-government loyalists and police.

Among the factors stirring up fresh anger in the streets, demonstrators and analysts point to comments attributed to King Abdullah II, in an interview published by The Atlantic, an American news magazine, on March 18.

In the interview, the king was reported as criticizing a wide range of Jordanians, including tribal elders — whom he reportedly dismissed as “old dinosaurs,” leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood, and members of his own family.

A press release issued by the royal court said the king’s comments had been taken out of context, but did not deny the accuracy of the quotes.

“The tribes have long been the backbone of the regime and they have sacrificed their lives for this country, so it is hard to understand why the king would make such comments about them,” said Basil Okour, a writer and founder of Jo24, an online news Web site.

After two years of regional turmoil, the steam had appeared to be going out of Jordanian activists’ demands for political and economic change.

“At the beginning we had a list of demands about the types of reforms we wanted to see as a youth movement,” said Mr. Ma’aytah, who belongs to the national youth movement, Hirak. “It was mostly about demands for more freedoms, economic opportunities and an end to corruption,” he said in an interview. “But over the months, the movement has become weaker, our demands were not being met and employment opportunities are scarce. We are wondering if we have accomplished our goals.”

Jordan’s overall unemployment rate stands at 12.5 percent, and youth unemployment is double that, according to the Department of Statistics.

“The biggest challenge right now for Jordan is economic, but also there are external and internal factors that will determine the stability of Jordan in the near future,” said Oraib al-Rantawi, director of Al-Quds Center for Political Studies, an independent Jordanian research institute.

The conflict in Syria has sent more than 470,000 refugees across the border, straining scarce resources even further. Egypt’s political instability and violence elsewhere in the region have added to the disillusionment, leading some Jordanians to question whether the revolutions that swept the region have produced any winners so far.

Still, protests continue, including among the tribes, despite the fact that their support for the monarchy has been repaid with a disproportionate share of well-paid and prestigious posts in the army and administration.

“We are extremely worried about the political direction and the state of the economy in the country,” said Sheik Adel al-Mahameed, a tribal leader in the historically restive city of Ma’an, where several riots have taken place in the past two years. “We feel we are neglected here in Ma’an, even by the monarchy,” he said.

For Mr. Rantawi, of the Al-Quds Center, the king’s comments, and the reactions they have elicited, reflect a growing sense that the political leadership of the country has lost its way.

“The regime and the government are facing a credibility problem among Jordanians, who are growing increasingly apathetic,” Mr. Rantawi said.

“There is a deep loss of confidence right now between the government, the regime and the people.”

“Many Jordanians would generally agree with the king’s statements in the Atlantic article,” criticizing conservative supporters as obstructing reform, he added. “However, the way that the king said these words to the outside world was not appropriate. These are topics and debates that we should be having internally.”

The king’s comments equally offended Islamist opponents in the Muslim Brotherhood, which he reportedly labeled a “Masonic cult,” run by “wolves in sheep’s clothing.”

Nimer al-Assaf, deputy secretary general of the Islamic Action Front, the political wing of the Muslim Brotherhood in Jordan, said, “We don’t believe such words would be said by the king.”

“But if it’s true, then we believe a big mistake was done,” he added, “because we are part of this country.”

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AMMAN — As the sun rises over the Jordanian capital, the problems of the day start to stream in to Radio Fann. In the studio, producers scramble to keep up with calls and e-mails from listeners complaining about issues like water shortages and bureaucratic failures.

In a country where the news media are traditionally hemmed in by authoritarian legislation and self-censorship, such call-in shows are now able to address political topics and human rights issues that were unmentionable in public before the Arab Spring.

Hani al Badri, 45, is host of Wasat al-Balad, a two-and-a-half-hour live broadcast for people who find nowhere else to turn. The producers not only field their calls; they ring government officials on-air to try to resolve the issues raised.

“The show has two main roles,” said Mr. Badri, who also writes a newspaper column in Al Ghad, an independent daily. The radio show is “a platform for freedom of speech, but it’s also a place where Jordanians expect their problems to be solved.”

The morning talk shows are popular in a country where local municipalities are weighed down by bloated bureaucracies and inadequate budgets, despite a plan in 2005 to increase their efficiency.

Even this week, public workers across the kingdom have been on strike demanding better pay and benefits. And although more people than expected voted in parliamentary elections last month, Jordanians weary of fuel price increases are bracing for more economic hardship this year.

With a population of just over six million, Jordan is a relatively poor country with almost 14 percent of its people living below the poverty line, according to the Department of Statistics.

“There is a lack of accountability by public officials,” Mr. Badri said, “so we bring them on the show and present them with a clear problem at a specific location. We try to solve the caller’s problem on the spot, if we can.”

Still, some Jordanians have accused the radio hosts of courting acclaim by publicly highlighting the government’s failures to provide basic services, Mr. Badri said. And sometimes, government officials would rather avoid dealing with the media, although over time they have come to appreciate the opportunity to present the government’s views to a wider audience, he added.

On Jan. 14, Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour met with directors of Jordan’s radio stations and presenters. Mr. Badri, who attended the meeting, said he took the opportunity to share a few of the concerns of his listeners: Whether to cancel the test that determines whether a student can attend university; what the repercussions will be of the prime minister’s decision to keep daylight saving time in force throughout the winter.

Daoud Kuttab, the founder and general manager of Radio Balad and AmmanNet, the first online community radio station, said radio had significant influence in Jordan. “Radio is extremely accessible and it is a democratic instrument,” he said. “You can listen to the radio at home, in the car or on your phone and anybody can call in. It is available 24 hours a day and it is free of charge.”

In 2002, the Jordanian government approved a law that ended its monopoly on broadcasting, resulting in the licensing of dozens of privately owned radio stations.

Still, “the media scene in Jordan, as it is in many Arab countries, is dominated by government-owned media,” Mr. Kuttab said. “For many years the government had a monopoly in media and in many ways they still do.”

Radio Fann, for example, is still owned by the Jordanian armed forces. Another, Amen FM, is owned by the police. Before the Arab Spring, most radio stations played primarily music.

AmmanNet, an independent station, changed the format of its morning show — “Tallet Subeh,” which means “Morning Glimpse” — from trying to solve social problems to building political and social awareness by profiling political candidates or analyzing new laws.

“Our show is now less service-oriented because we found the long-term impact is limited,” Mr. Kuttab said. “There needs to be institutional changes and obviously the popularity of these morning talk shows continues to reveal flaws in the system.”

One reason Mr. Badri’s radio show succeeds is his willingness to discuss issues that have a direct impact on listeners’ daily lives.

On a recent program, for example, he discussed the price of cooking gas cylinders which has increased 50 percent since the government cut public subsidies three months ago.

Callers have also complained about traffic violations and the cost of real estate. Others call to weigh in on current events.

Humor and Arabic pop songs are used to lighten long discussions as Jordanians make their way to work or school. In between conversations, a D.J. chooses lyrics from Arabic pop songs that echo complaints from listeners. When a caller said he felt neglected by the government, the background music was a love song about abandonment.

“When the show first began, we told government officials that it’s better they respond to caller requests and go on the record,” said Mr. Badri, who hosted the show for nearly a year. “Some officials now realize the power of the media because ordinary citizens have found an outlet to hold them accountable.”

Mr. Badri said he worried less about censorship these days, and more about the lack of access to information the public has a right to know.

“For now we will continue to put pressure on officials,” he said, “and talk about taboo issues as well.”

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